Returning oysters to the bay

Tillamook Esturaries Partnership volunteer coordinator Suzan Greenwood helps load bags of shells hosting native Olympic oyster larvae onto a boat in Netarts Bay, Oregon. © Dick Vander Schaaf/TNC

Native oysters are poised for a comeback in Netarts Bay, thanks to a local partnership and a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Historically found from the shores of Alaska to San Francisco, the Olympic oyster (Ostrea conchaphila) has declined due to pollution and other negative impacts on West Coast bays and estuaries.

The Nature Conservancy, together with partners including the Whiskey Creek Shellfish Hatchery, Oregon State University and local oyster growers, is rearing Olympia oysters in Netarts Bay, beginning with 5 million larvae spawned in 2005 and another 5 million spawned in 2006. A restored oyster population will improve water quality by filtering the water and building shell reefs.

For more information, download our oyster restoration fact sheet (1MB).

Oyster fast facts:

• A single adult oyster can filter up to 25 gallons of water a day.
• Annual harvest of Olympia oysters in Washington reached 130,000 bushels by the 1890s. By 1910,  production declined to only 16,000 bushels a year. Harvest declines were similar in Oregon and California.
• Coasts, bays and estuaries contain some of the most productive yet altered ecosystems on Earth, which is why the Conservancy's Global Marine Initative targets the restoration and conservation of native shellfish,  including the Olympia oyster.
• The Nature Conservancy operates more than 100 marine conservation projects in 22 countries and all coastal U.S. states.